Chicken Spiedini

Happy Friday!! O.M.G. am I excited for this weekend! We are heading up to Mammoth to hit the slopes! Apparently there was about 4 feet for fresh powder this week, so basically it’s now or never. I’m pretty much bubbly over with joy to have Bev here from Bev Cooks. In case you don’t know Bev she is basically the best commenter in the history of the world. Dinosaurs included. Literally. I kid you not, each morning I wake up and Bev has left a hilarious comment on whatever I posted. It basically sends me on my way with a giant smile on my face. She also has killer recipes. So basically she’s awesome. And today she cooked up a delicious dinner for us. I’m totes making this for Valentine’s Day this year. Take it away Bev!

Hello, helloooo! I’m Bev and I blog over at Bev Cooks. Fab-uh-lush to meet ya. I can’t thank Gaby enough for letting me annoy the tar about of you gu— I MEAN—guest post for her today. She’s the best.

Okay so let’s talk about chicken spiedini. And um, first of all, my auto-correct changes the word to “speeding.” Because chicken speeding makes WAY more sense.

Have you spiedini’d before? It’s basically the Italian word for skewered meat or fish. Oh my face, let me tell you. A couple of years ago hubs and I were invited to a dinner party where all I had to do was sit and watch and drink and talk and not make a terd out of myself. I can tell you that I was successful at least 45% of the time!

So, the main course comes out….chicken spiedini. There they were. All perfectly browned and crispy and sexy. Sitting like little champions on top of a bed of silky strands of spaghetti. Enveloped in the deepest, most beautiful stewed tomato sauce I’ll ever understand. Shavings of fresh parmesan fell to garnish the dish in slow motion. Fresh parsley dotted the plate in all its vibrancy and crispness. And I stood up. And looked at it. And pointed at it. And bawled my eyes out. And had to be taken to another room to calm down and act like a grown up.

THIS WAS BEFORE I EVEN TASTED IT.

I don’t really need to go into the ambulance ride and hospital visit, do I?

You guys, please spiedini. You seriously have to spiedini. For the love, spiedini fast and spiedini right now.

And do you know what? Just go ahead and call it chicken speeding. I’m actually starting to like it.

Start by stewing your tomatoes. Add the chopped tomatoes to a saucepan and simmer on low for 15 minutes. Increase the heat, toss in the butter, stock, sugar, salt and pepper and simmer for 45 more minutes.

In a shallow dish, combine the breadcrumbs, parmesan, lemon zest, garlic and a tiny pinch of salt and pepper.

In another, combine 2 Tbs. oil and melted butter.

Dredge the chicken pieces through the butter/oil mixture, then through the breadcrumb mixture. Place pieces on wooden skewers.

Heat the remaining 2 Tbs. oil in a medium skillet over medium-high. Cook the chicken until golden brown on all sides and cooked through, about 8 minutes total.

Cook the pasta until it reaches al dente. Drain and add to the tomato sauce. Toss to combine.

Serve chicken spiedini over a bed of spaghetti. Garnish with more parsley, freshly grated parmesan and for the sake of the babies, more lemon juice!

For a second I thought you had put fried mozzarella on top of pasta which got me all excited, then I realized it was chicken and I was even more excited. Well almost. Fried cheese holds a very special place in my heart. Its right next to where Ryan Reynolds sits.

I think my entire emotional well being revolves around the hilarity of auto-correct mistakes. It’s like having a drunk uncle right inside your phone. And your Speeding Chicken should be speeding towards my mouth right about now 😉 Thanks for the lovely post Bev & Gaby!

I totes need to try this chicken spiedini. I had to copy & paste that word because there is no way I could ever remember it long enough to spell it. How about simply “Italian Chicken Skewers”
Fun to see Bev here ~ she brightens everyone’s day!

So I made this for Valentine’s celebrations this weekend and let me tell you…PERFECTO. It’s incredibly tender and fragrant with the garlic, parsley and lemon. Drizzling the lemon over the top was the piece de resistance! My picky eater boyfriend declared it the most flavorful chicken he’s ever had.

May be tasty but it is not Speidini…. My grandmother and mother made wonderful speidini and it was thin meat rolled with a paste made from cheese and spicy tomato sauce, breaded and grilled. Served with Amoigue.